No. 39 – New Orleans Saints | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Position: | Placekicker | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born: | 2001or2002(age 22–23) Mayobridge, Newry, County Down, Northern Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight: | 210 lb (95 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Charlie Smyth (born 2001/2002) is a Northern Irish former Gaelic football goalkeeper and current American football placekicker for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played at senior level for the Down county team, before joining the NFL's International Player Pathway Program (IPPP) in 2024.
Smyth began playing Gaelic football when he was four years old. [1] He first came to prominence as the goalkeeper for Down's Ulster Under-20 Championship winning team in 2020, scoring in every game of the campaign that ended at the All-Ireland semi-final stage. [2]
In 2021, Smyth was the goalkeeper on the Down winning team to lift the Ulster Under-20 title, their first since 2009. [3] [4] He was one of three players from Down who received honours in the EirGrid All-Ireland Under-20 football awards that year. [5]
In 2023, he made his debut on the Down county football team and was a Tailteann Cup runner-up with Down. [6] [7]
In January 2024, Smyth began training in American football via the National Football League's International Player Pathway Program. [8] He participated in the NFL Scouting Combine where he connected on 12 of 16 attempts. [9] At his pro-day, he made 8 of 10 field goals, including one from 60 yards. [9] On 29 March 2024, he signed a three-year contract with the New Orleans Saints, becoming the first GAA player to sign an NFL contract. [10] [11] [12] Smyth had sent an email to the NFL in July 2019 asking for a tryout hoping to see if his Gaelic football skills could transfer to the NFL. [13]
Smyth is a native of Mayobridge, Newry. [14] He attended St Colman's College. [15] Smyth studied at St Mary's University College, where he was completing a master's degree in physical education. [1] [16] Prior to that, Smyth had trained as a primary school teacher with Irish language and was ready to teach while also playing GAA with his club Mayobridge. [17] [18]
Mayobridge is a village within Newry, County Down, Northern Ireland, lying on the small river Clanrye which divides the townlands of Mayo and Bavan. It is located within the Newry and Mourne District Council area - it had a population of 1,069 people in the 2011 Census. It falls within the parish of Clonallan, and historically within the barony of Upper Iveagh Upper.
Casement Park is the principal Gaelic games stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland, that served as the home ground of the Antrim hurling and Gaelic football teams. It is located in Andersonstown Road in the west of the city, and is named after the Irish revolutionary Roger Casement. In 2015, the stadium had a capacity of approximately 31,500.
Páirc Esler is a GAA stadium in Newry, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is the home of the Down Gaelic football and hurling teams and the Newry Shamrocks GAA club. The ground has a capacity of about 20,000.
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Brendan "Benny" Coulter is an Irish Gaelic football manager and player who plays for his local club Mayobridge and, previously, for the Down senior football team until his retirement in 2014; he also teaches kids about Gaelic in different schools around Northern Ireland.
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Mayobridge Gaelic Athletic Association, also called Mayobridge Gaelic Athletic Club or Saint Patrick's Gaelic Athletic Social Club, is a Gaelic football and ladies' Gaelic football club based in Mayobridge, County Down, Northern Ireland.
Gaelic Life is a Gaelic games newspaper. It has been published since 2007.
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John Murphy was an Irish Gaelic footballer, manager, coach and selector. His career included All-Ireland Championship victories as a player and later as a coach and selector with the Down senior football team.
As with other sports, the COVID-19 pandemic caused disruption to Gaelic games, primarily in Ireland but also elsewhere in the world. Competitions were cancelled, postponed or restructured, while some teams were withdrawn or were unable to participate in those competitions that went ahead.
The following is a summary of Donegal county football team's 2021 season.
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